A large contingent of volunteer UCSF Dentistry students, faculty and staff greeted children and parents at Give Kids a Smile Day 2015 on Saturday, Feb. 21, and the smiles were just as wide and the appreciation was just as deep as in years past.
“The students are very friendly, kind and patient,” said one parent. Added another: “Fantastic dental staff! Very thorough explanations!”
The annual event, which takes place in the UCSF Dental Center’s Predoctoral Clinic, includes dental screenings for children between the ages of 4 and 17, as well as dental sealants and fluoride treatments, all provided at no cost. Oral health information and supplies, including toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss are offered, along with a variety of fun activities for children, in an education room.
Highlights this year included face painting provided by clinical staff member and resident artist Isaac Zamora, who added superheroes, cartoon characters and dental themes to faces and hands of all ages.
Third-year dental student Jean Calvo, President of UCSF Dentistry’s chapter of the California Public Health Association - North, which organized the event, stressed the high quality of the dental examinations, treatments and public education performed by the volunteer participants, including many from undergraduate pre-dental clubs at schools outside of San Francisco and the Bay Area. “This is what Give Kids a Smile Day is all about,” said Calvo.
BY THE NUMBERS
Student volunteers (dental and pre-dental): 177
Faculty and staff volunteers: 29
Number of children seen: 69
Procedures
Coronal Polishing: 38
Fluoride Varnish: 60
Sealants: 94
Scaling: 1
Preventive Resin Restoration: 1
Diagnoses and referrals
Diagnosed with carious lesions: 25
Orthodontic referrals: 10
Oral pathology findings: 4
Dental visit frequency
More often than once a year: 40
Every one to two years: 17
Every three to five years: 3
Never: 8
Dental care inaccessible
Yes: 33
No: 34
Don’t know: 1
Reasons given
Dentist doesn’t accept Denti-Cal/Healthy Families: 12
Can’t afford dental care: 9
No insurance: 14
Insurance inadequate: 2
Dental problems not serious enough: 4
Difficulty in getting an appointment: 2
Didn’t want to go to the dentist: 2
Insurance
None: 22
Private: 17
Denti-Cal: 23
Healthy Families: 5
Primary Language
English: 42
Spanish: 21
Chinese: 7
Russian: 3
Indonesian: 1
Japanese: 6
Vietnamese: 1
Pictured
Student volunteers at Give Kids a Smile Day 2015
Link
California Public Health Association - North